Happy Birthday!

Newman Levy

was born Nov. 30, 1888
(d. March 1966)

He was an Assistant District Attorney of NY City, opera and theater fan. He wrote for the New Yorker Magazine and The Saturday Evening Post and published several books of light verse including Opera Guyed from which cometh "Thais"

          One time in Alexandria, in wicked Alexandria,
          Where nights were wild with revelry, and life was but a game,
          There lived, so the report is, an adventuress and courtesan,
          The pride of Alexandria, and Thais was her name.

The "Thais" story is fascinating & I've done a certain amount of looking into it. The mythohistorical Saint lived in the 4th century CE and associated with acceptedly historical saints. The story, a classic tragedy has carried forward in oral and written traditions – opera, liturgy, folk tales, novelettes, etc. Levy's 1923 song is still learned orally in certain singing groups. I enjoy singing it.

If anyone has any knowledge of retellings of the story after the year 1000 (Sister Hrotswitha) but before 1890 (Anatole France) I'd be most interested.

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